Monday, September 10, 2012

Illustrating the Recent Rapid Reduction in Arctic Sea Ice Extent

Illustrating the Recent Reduction In Arctic Sea Ice

September 9, 2012: Arctic Sea Ice has reached its minimum coverage for the year and it is a record low ice coverage. The following map and text below the map tell an important story about the recent rapid reduction in sea ice extent in the Arctic. Deke Arndt of the National Climatic Data Center prepared the map and text below the map. The graph at the end of the post (from the National Snow and Ice Data Center) shows the current ice cover extent and compares it to the normal as well as previous minimum extent.

During the average September in the
late 20th Century, the sea ice in the Arctic would retreat to an annual minimum
roughly the size as the contiguous U.S., but with Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana
melted off. To get the size of today's sea ice, start with contiguous U.S.,
minus Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana ... then melt Florida, then melt Georgia,
then melt Alabama, then melt Mississippi, then melt South Carolina, then melt
North Carolina, then melt Tennessee, then melt Oklahoma, then melt Virginia,
then melt West Virginia, then melt Kentucky, then melt Maryland, then melt
Delaware, then melt New Mexico, then melt Arizona, then melt New Jersey, then
melt Connecticut, then melt Rhode Island, then melt Massachusetts, then melt
Maine, then melt New Hampshire, then melt Vermont, then melt New York, then
melt Pennsylvania, then melt Ohio, then melt Indiana, then melt Illinois, then
melt Missouri, then melt Wisconsin, then melt Iowa.